Sir Saotome
by DarkJackel
Summary: After the Neko-Ken a maddened Ranma is sent to RIFTs Earth. There he learns the ways of the Cyber-Knight. Warning: first fic.
1. Sir Saotome Prologue: The Cat's Out of...

Sir Saotome  
  
A Ranma/Rifts Crossover by DarkJackel  
  
Disclaimer: I own none of this, not Rifts, not Ranma ½, and the Invader Zim and Happy Noodle Boy things I sampled do not belong to me either. Please don't sue me I am poor and not worth the effort.  
  
First Fan Fiction Alert!!  
  
Prologue One: The Cats Out of the Bag ____________________________________________________________________________  
  
(Jusenkyo Earth)  
  
"Damned worthless boy" thought Genma Saotome for the twentieth time as he chased after his son. 'Oh why was he cursed with such a weak child that he couldn't have just learned the Neko-Ken like a real man and have been done with it?' he thought. Thankfully, he had realized early on that all the noise that the cats would make. Therefore, he relocated the pit outside of town, to avoid drawing the attention of the public, who, as Genma had learned from his time under the Master (shudder), did not always appreciate the rigorous training that a true martial artist must endure and would doubtlessly try to interfere. So at least they were running through a forest and not a populated city. Genma lost sight of his son as he went into a cave on the hill they had run up. He found his son in the cave crouched on all fours hissing with his back arched. 'Pathetic boy' thought Genma as he approached his insane son.  
  
Then it happened.  
  
You see this cave used to serve as an ancient dimensional transportation device and the planets had just come into alignment. This caused a massive surge of power that activated the transporter pad.  
  
Genma watched in shock as his only son and meal ticket vanished from this Earth in a column of blue-white light. As the shock cleared form what passes for Genma's brain he summed up this bizarre event in two words.  
  
"Oh shit."  
  
Then he remembered his wife, Nodoka. He especially remembered her katana. He also remembered that it was a very sharp katana. Oh and that little seppuku pledge he had made to placate her when he stole away her only child who she loved very much and would wreck horrific violence upon his body if she found out that something like this had happened to her son. Suddenly Genma was gripped with a powerful desire to learn more about lands far away from his wife and her katana, like China or India.  
  
And so with no further hesitation Genma began his flight from Japan.  
  
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(Rifts Earth: "English", {Japanese})  
  
Neko-Ranma landed lightly on the soft moist grass and quickly hid in the forests. He then remembered that in his flight from the fat-man that he had not eaten and was quite hungry. Quietly the cat-minded boy searched for prey.  
  
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(Two days later)  
  
Sir Browning and his companions carefully scoured the forests surrounding the small town they had stopped in. For two days now, the settlement had been plagued by a mysterious cat-beast, which had been feeding off the local livestock. It had managed to cut through or avoid all the normal traps designed to keep predators at bay so naturally Sir Browning, much to his comrade's dismay, offered they're services in hunting down and eliminating the monster. The Cyber-Knight halted as he heard a rustling in the foliage ahead and to his right. Cautiously he crept over and peered through. He say a young boy no more that six, of Asian decent, wearing a tattered gi and crouching on all fours drinking out of a pond. After pumping a little psionic energy into a techno-wizard device, he checked the boy's aura and found it to be human, if a little off.  
  
"Hey what are you doing out hear." Browning said to the strange boy, catching his attention. The boy leapt up and turned around hissing menacingly at the knight and landing in a defensive crouch. Neko-Ranma struck out with his chi-claws, which Sir Browning barely parried with his psi-swords, if it had not been for his sixth sense he would have been reduced to shredded meat. The stalemate continued for a while and seemed like it would continue for some time when just then Neko-Ranma's eyes glazed over and he passed out.  
  
"Well that certainly was different." Said a voice from behind him. "Hey Bill, thanks kids tougher then he looks." Sir Browning said as he turned to face his friend. Bill just smirked at his friend and asked, "So what do we do with him? His aura's human so I think we can assume that he's not a monster."  
  
"Actually I was wondering if you could see if you could find out what's wrong with him." replied Browning as he gathered up the child and started to carry him away. "But first let's get him some shelter."  
  
Bill just shook his head and telepathically contacted the others telling them that the search was over as he followed Sir Browning back to town.  
  
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Five hours later Bill Johnson walked out of the room he had been examining Ranma in. Bonelessly the Mind Melter slid into the couch nearest to the door and massaged his temples. "So how is he?" Kain, the head magic- user of their group, asked Bill while sipping some tea.  
  
Bill groaned and said, "He should be fine. There was some kind of mental trauma that was making him act like a cat. It was also responsible for those claws he was using." Sir Browning perked up from the chair across the room as Bill continued. "I was able to get rid of the trauma so now we just have to wait until he comes too." Bill then began meditating to regain his lost power.  
  
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Ranma opened his eyes wearily and wondered where he was. The last thing he remembered was being thrown into the pit of cats by his papa and now he was in a strange room. It didn't look like a hospital or a hotel, and where was his papa. Just then, the door opened and a strange looking woman walked in and gasped at him. She then shouted something in a language that Ranma couldn't understand and two other men came in. The first man was dressed in a loose, collared, t-shirt, equally loose-fitting jeans and walked with the flowing grace that defined him as a warrior, the second was dressed in a flowing green robe and walked like someone with limited combat training but lots of experience. The first man said something to him in a language that he didn't understand. {What?} Ranma asked in confusion.  
  
{I said how are you feeling young man?} The first man said.  
  
{Fine I guess.} Ranma replied.  
  
{My name is Sir Ronald Browning and this} he said gesturing to the second man {is Kain Benson. What's your name?}  
  
{It's Ranma; Ranma Saotome of the Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial Arts. Where am I? Where is my papa?} Ranma asked, still confused.  
  
{I'm afraid we don't know that. Where are you from, Ranma?}  
  
{Umm Tokyo, I think. Why, is something wrong?}  
  
{What is the last thing that you remember?}  
  
{Papa was trying to get me to learn a new martial arts technique, the Neko-Ken, I think.} Ranma replied.  
  
{How was he doing this?} Kain inquired.  
  
{He was wrapping me in fish stuff and throwing me into a pit of starving cats.} Ranma answered; surprised that he had been able to say all that without being overwhelmed by the fear of cats that had been developing within him ever since he began the cat fist training. Ronald and Kain both stared in shock at that statement. What kind of monster does something like that to their own child? After a while Kain asked {Could you excuse us for a moment Ranma?}  
  
{Sure}  
  
Kain and Sir Browning then left the room.  
  
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"Listen Ron, I think we need to be frank with him, the fact is it will be years, if ever that we can find out the dimension he's from and even then I don't think he should be returned to his father if that's what he wants to make his son into." Kain said as soon as they were out of earshot. "Hey Ron he said he was learning martial arts, you could always teach him yourself. Now hear me out." He said cutting off Sir Browning before he could speak "Odds are he'll be stuck on this world for some time and I know how much you've wanted a talented squire. This will help him adjust to his situation and help him make a life for himself should he not be able to return home. What do you say?"  
  
Sir Browning sighed; Kain had taken away all his arguments for not taking the boy under his wing. "Okay I'll ask him and if he agrees I'll train him." Ronald said in defeat. "Trust me he might surprise you." Kain said with an enigmatic smile. Only then was Sir Browning truly worried.  
  
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Ranma waited while the two men, Mr. Ronald and Mr. Kain, talked. As he waited he wondered what would happen to him and where he was, he was pretty sure that it wasn't anywhere in Japan, maybe China, that would explain why everyone spoke so funny here. The door then opened and Sir Browning walked in and sat down next to him. He then proceeded to tell Ranma what had happened to him finishing by saying, "Ranma, I'm sorry to tell you this but it is next to impossible to find your home dimension, in the meantime, if you want, I could train you as a warrior. If you don't want to I won't hold it against you."  
  
That left Ranma perplexed; few people had asked his opinion on things ever, except for his old buddy Ucchan. However Ranma is nothing if not versatile, while he might have to wait it was still a possibility for him to get home, and he needed to keep up his martial arts or papa would be royally pissed off. So the decision was made. {Thanks mister, I'd be honored.}  
  
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Over the next few years, Sir Browning trained Ranma's mind, body, and spirit into a finely tuned fighting machine teaching him armed and unarmed combat, military strategy, tactics, martial arts, tact, compassion for others, discretion, the Code of Chivalry, developing his latent psychic potential, and seeing to his education. After his training was finished, Sir Ranma set out to find his place in the world. After several adventures the young Cyber-Knight became part of a plot to raid the Splugorth in Atlantis, it was there he meet a sorcerer from Russia named Eric. Eric's family had emigrated from his native Poland to Russia when he was very young, since leaving them; he has made a living working freelance. He also possessed an aptitude for magic that rivaled Ranma's own skill at battle. After the raid, the two had to escape to another dimension and traveled to several other worlds before returning to their Earth. Upon their return the two, who now thought of each other as brothers, ended up traveling around the world, eventually Ranma returned to North America to fight Xiticix for Lazlo before the war at Tolkeen.  
  
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Many years after having set out on their own Ranma, Eric, and other friends and allies of his joined in the war between the Coalition States and Tolkeen. With great reluctance, Ranma put in charge of a platoon, with which he lead a series of daring raids deep behind enemy lines to strike their supply lines. However eventually the overwhelming numerical superiority of the Coalition military wore down the defenders of Tolkeen and the land was conquered. In a rush to save as many civilians as possible, Ranma, Eric, and what remained of their unit fled with a group of refugees, pushing to get them out of the country and to safety.  
  
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Sir Ranma Saotome looked out from atop a cliff, watching the night as he reflected upon the events that had lead him here. During the course of the war Sir Ranma had earned distinction as a unit leader and been made an officer. He led his platoon in several cavalry raids deep behind Coalition lines, disrupting the flow of men and material that the CS needed for their war of genocide. That in and of itself was what had motivated him to join in the war, to protect the innocent beings of Tolkeen from the Coalition's hatred of that which did not conform to their standards of purity, of humanity. Unfortunately, to gather forces to fight the Coalition the Kingdom of Tolkeen had made a number of alliances with dark powers. This made it hard for the knights in Tolkeen's service to remain above the atrocities that were committed during the course of the war. Before he had achieved an officers rank Sir Ranma had to silently bare witness to the horrors his demonic "allies" could inflict upon their enemies, and the glee with which they preformed their villainy. Not having forgotten those, experiences Sir Ranma had used his rank to hand pick every man, woman, and creature in his unit so that none of his subordinates would perform such heinous acts as the sort he had seen.  
  
Upon hearing a noise in the bushes behind him, Sir Ranma turned and saw one of the refugees that he and his men were helping to escape from the Coalition Army. "Hey what's up?" he said to the young person.  
  
"Umm sir I just wanted to tell you the .umm. recon group is back sir." The refugee, a young D-Bee child said nervously.  
  
Sir Ranma smiled reassuringly at the young man. "Thank you for telling me this. Now why don't we head back?" And with that, he Ranma and the young D-Bee headed to where they had been breaking up camp to continue their trek to the Ironhorse that would be taking their almost five hundred refugees away to Lazlo.  
  
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"So what did you find?" Ranma said as he approached the table where the recon group and leaders of his unit were seated.  
  
"A whole lot of bad news, that's what." Eric said. "About ten miles from our possession there is a CS encampment about battalion size with heavy armor. I'd say they plan on moving out just after dawn."  
  
Ranma frowned, that was bad news indeed. They were outnumbered by more than ten to one. "What types of heavy armor?" he asked.  
  
"At least one Skull Smasher, some Abolishers, and a few others I couldn't make out and PAs." Another wizard said.  
  
Sir Ranma sat there for a while weighing his options. If they started, now they could make it to the pickup point but it would take time to get the refugees on the train. If the CS attacked at that time, the train could be destroyed and they'd all be killed. However, there was the distinct possibility that they could delay the Coalition troops while the refugees made a run for it. However, that would mean that his men would have to escape on their own. With a sigh, he addressed his troops. "Okay everyone the CS plans to wipe us out and if we all make a run for the Ironhorse it is most likely that we will all die. Now I have a plan, if we strike the CS troops as they are breaking camp we can delay them until the Iron horse gets out. After that, all of us make a break for it and regroup twenty miles north of this point. After that, we will head to Lazlo and with any luck get jobs hunting Xiticix. Do you foresee any problems with that plan Seer?"  
  
The Grey Seer closed his eyes and looked into the possible futures. "I see that this plan could succeed, though the costs will be high."  
  
"Sir Ranma, should my brother Warlocks and I summon Elementals to aid in the upcoming battle?" the Water Warlock Seaspray asked. He was one of four Warlocks that had joined Ranma's group early on; since Seaspray was the best tactician of them, he was the one who attended these meetings.  
  
"Good thinking Seaspray. That should be a big help but let the Elementals return home should their deaths seem eminent." The pig-tailed Cyber-Knight replied as Seaspray went to relay the plans to the others. After a few minutes, the plans had been relayed and everyone was getting ready. Ever since they had started out on this mission, the CS had been harassing them and now it was time for the battle to determine the final victor in this little game of cat and mousse.  
  
"GET THE HELL OFFA MY RIDE!!!!!" one of the mercs screamed at the Crazy A.J., who was situated on the drivers-side windshield of the mercs hover rover.  
  
"MOO." A.J. replied, still carrying the manhole cover he had taken from the capital as they had fled. Ignoring the argument Ranma continued to don his TW modified armor. After sealing the helmet of his heavy, traditional styled armor, Ranma spoke to his troops over the radio.  
  
"All right people, let's move out."  
  
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Eric smiled wickedly as he watched the CS camp, concealed by spells of invisibility. 'Time to rain some doom down upon my doomed enemies (1).' Eric thought. He stood concealed by an invisibility spell in the woods. Drawing power from his nearly exhausted energy sphere Eric began to cast a particularly wicked spell. Upon completion, magic razorblades began to fall from the sky, shredding the troops not fully armored to bloody strips of meat. After completing that, he began on a spell to disorganize some of the Coalition troops. Eric then cast a pair of protective spells and a Lightblade spell so that he could join his comrades in battle.  
  
(1): Line from Invader Zim.  
  
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As Eric finished his Steel Rain spell Sir Ranma, A.J. and several others made there way to the camp. Upon reaching, the point A.J. threw his manhole cover at a soldier who was not wearing his helmet, tearing his head off and crushing it.  
  
With that, Ranma, riding upon his robot horse, lead his troops into the encampment area that was unaffected by Eric's magic. From concealed possessions, snipers kept RPAs out of the robots and the few Iron Juggernaughts in Ranma's group attacked the ones that were moving. In the sky a lesser Air Elemental, a flying Iron Juggernaught, and several suits of power armor engaged the sky cycles and SAMAS units that got airborne. The mercs in Ranma's unit advanced on the Coalition encampment laying down withering fire.  
  
Sir Ranma charged in on his stead, chopping off the head of a grunt as he moved past. Leaping from his horse the young knight turned to engaged four more grunts who opened up on him with their rifles. The robot ran off, still carrying Ranma's robot dog to wait for its master's call. Ranma ducked and rolled out of the way of the laser pulses fired by the Dead Boys and summoned his psi-weapons. The Dead Boys continued to lay down their fire but Ranma moved too fast for them to react, as if he knew where they were going to shoot before they did. As this was happening, the Warlocks made their contributions to the battle. The Earth, Water, and Fire Elementals engaged the troops on the ground; a mighty earthquake tore the ground open and destroyed all in the path of the quake, especially the heavy robots. A river of lava appeared on the ground swallowing those who had stood on the ground it was cast on, melting armor and vaporizing flesh with unnatural heat.  
  
Using the distraction of these unnatural elemental assaults Sir Ranma charged the grunts that had opened fire on him. With a forward thrust, he impaled one of the grunts on his right psi-sword and, turning the left one into an axe, lopped off the head of another. One of the remaining grunts tried to club Ranma with the butt of his rifle but Ranma ducked and, with his axe, chopped off one of the soldier's legs at the knee. The grunt fell to the ground screaming after the blade of crimson psionic energy had severed his leg but before Ranma could deliver a finishing blow the last Dead Boy came at him, wielding a vibro-saber. Ranma parried the blow with his psi-sword and, returning his axe to sword form, retaliated in kind, leaving a deep gouge in the Dead Boy's armor. Following up his strike the Cyber-Knight made a slash with his right sword, dropped into a sweeping kick, and then finished the fallen Dead Boy with a thrust thru the weakened armor.  
  
Reacting to a tingling in his senses, Ranma leaned out of the way instants before a hail of rail gunfire passed thru his position. Ranma then turned to face the threat as the Glitter Boy Killer that had fired at him closed in. The Killer slashed at Sir Ranma with a set of twin blades and followed up the assault with a burst from its shoulder mounted rail guns. However, Sir Ranma would not be as easily felled as he dodged the slash and seemed to flow out of the way of the rail guns bullets. Leaping forward Ranma made a skillful double-slash with his psi-swords, cutting off the PAs right arm. The Killer responded by leaping back and firing a blast from its forearm ion and plasma guns. However like all Cyber-Knights Sir Ranma was trained in Zen combat which allowed him an additional edge against high-tech opponents, which Ranma demonstrated by evading the blast and closing in to continue the fight. The Killer reacted by attempting to run the Cyber-Knight thru with the vibro-blades on his other arm. Ranma parried the blade with one sword while using the other to attack the head of the suit. Sir Ranma had long ago learned that the best way to beat a Borg or suit of Power Armor was to cripple it. Take out the weapons, restrict its mobility, and destroy the sensor systems were the best way to deal with them. His sixth sense started screaming and Ranma rolled left as two mini-missiles shot from two of the right tubes. The pilot then tried to tag Ranma with a leaping kick but Ranma brought his swords down on the extended leg and sliced off the foot. The pilot landed hard as Ranma leapt out of the way, drew his pistol, and shot one of the mini-missiles, detonating the rest and consuming the power armor in plasma fire. Ranma then ducked as a hail of bullets flew by him, fired by two Skelebots.  
  
An armored hover rover driven by a zombie burst out of the forest and slammed into the Coalition unit's command vehicle, detonating the explosives that had been crammed into the thing and severely damaging the APC. Large numbers of zombies and mummies came out of the woods and charged the Coalition troops with vibro-weapons. This was somewhat unsettling because in life the majority of them had been CS troops. As the dead continued, pilling up the magic-users in the unit began animating the corpses to fight with them.  
  
Eric, his invisibility spell down, battled a Psi-Stalker wielding a vibro-sword with his magically constructed blade. The Psi-Stalker scored some hits on the magic barriers that Eric had set up but eventually the magic-user managed to get a clean hit in, gouging a deep slash into the Stalker's armor. The Psi-Stalker then returned with a diagonal slash but was stopped from completing the attack by a blast the mage deflected into his enemies face. As that happened particle beam, blast fired by one of Eric's allies struck the Stalker from the side, killing him. Eric then turned and cast a power bolt, blasting the arm off a Skelebot. The arm flew off the body, rail gun still firing, and turned such that the gun shot up the body of the Skelebot. He then cast a time slip, stopping time so he could close in on another opponent.  
  
As the battle continued to rage on a pair of Coalition Grunts, fresh from the academy, turned their laser assault rifles on a person who was not wearing any armor, hoping for an easy kill. Unfortunately, they had forgotten one of the most basic lessons. Anyone who goes into battle without some measure of armor is either stupid, an unnatural entity, or powerful enough to back up their confidence. In the case of the man in question, it was the latter as he turned to the pair and with a flick of his wrist sent about a half dozen small objects at one of the two with the force of a rail gun. The grunt reflexively tried to protect himself and accidentally put his rifle between the attack and himself. The rifle exploded vaporizing his arms and rendering him blind. The mutilated man collapsed to the ground screaming in agony. Wraith, no one knows his real name did not stop to admire his work but used the flash as a distraction to close with the second grunt and before the soldier was able to recover from his shock the Psi-Slayer had driven his psi-dagger thru the man's throat and practically decapitated him. Activating his psi-sword in his other hand the black-clad assassin moved on to his next target with merciless efficiency.  
  
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Despite the strong start, the attack had possessed and the superior skill of his troops the sheer number of soldiers the CS could throw at them was beginning to take its toll. In fact, what was seeing them thru now was that Eric had cast Disharmonize on the CS troops, keeping them from acting as a cohesive unit. Because of that, the only ones fighting with any semblance of organization were the Skelebots, though the confused and disorganized human troops could still be a threat if ignored. Dodging another burst from the rail gun of a Skelebot Sir Ranma closed in and engaged the robot with his psi-swords. The Skelebot extended the vibro- blades from its non-gun wielding arm and swiped at the Cyber-Knight. However, the same combat awareness that gave him an edge against tech wielding opponents was even more effective against full A.I.s and Sir Ranma leaned away, dodging the blow. In return, the pig-tailed knight cut the belt feed to the rail guns ammo-drum, rendering the gun useless. The Skelebot dropped the now useless firearm and unsheathed its other pair of vibro-blades. Ranma made a cut at the torso of the bot, which was parried and returned with a backhand slash that Sir Ranma bent out of the way of and avoided. The robot followed up with a leg-sweep that Sir Ranma avoided by leaping over. Landing behind his adversary Ranma made a fierce double- slash with his psi-blades at the spinal section of the bot that connected it's torso to the pelvis and legs. After cutting thru the machines spinal column Sir Ranma rolled away from the falling body. Once it had landed, the Cyber-Knight drove his psi-weapons thru the robot's torso, destroying its central processor.  
  
Ranma then engaged two Juicers who had abandoned their rifles in favor of the vibro-claws on their forearm integral weapons one their right wrists and charged him. Sidestepping a strike from one of the chemically enhanced super-soldiers Sir Ranma struck out with his blade only to find it parried by the Juicers forearm vibro-blades. The other tried to strike at Ranma from behind but his own psychic senses warned him of the danger and the knight flowed out of the way of the deadly blade. It was only the lightning fast reflexes of the Juicer, which saved the young man from disembowelment by Ranma's psi-sword as he attacked the Juicer behind him. Reacting to his sixth sense Sir Saotome ducked as the other Juicer tried to run him thru and Ranma drove one of his blades thru the augmented human's throat. Leaning out of the way of a particle beam blast from the last Juicer Ranma made a complex series of cuts scoring several hits against his less skilled opponent. Finally, Ranma was able to score a killing blow and disembowel the last of the two.  
  
Having bested his foes Sir Ranma took stock of the situation. The battlefield was a scene straight out of hell; mutilated corpses riddled the battlefield as warriors fought. He saw as the fires of the lesser fire elemental they had enlisted to aid them vaporized a CS grunt. Another was being pummeled to death by a golem. The IAR-3 Skull Smasher was engaged in brutal combat with a Thundering Iron Juggernaut. However many of his own troops were dieing as the battle raged on. A Dragon Blood Juicer crushed the head of a soldier and thru the corpse at two more Dead Boys, knocking them down. However before he could close to finish the two he was hit in the back with a plasma mini-missile and before he could get up four more Dead Boys concentrated fire on him. They did not stop until the only thing left of the mighty Juicer was an unrecognizable pile of charred meat. After taking in the bedlam, surrounding him Sir Ranma determined that it was time for the retreat. Dispelling his psi-swords Ranma pulled a flare gun out and shot a TW Storm flare into the sky. The resulting rainstorm was the signal for the rest of the team to make their respective escapes. Pulling out his rifle Sir Ranma began laying down covering fire while making a withdrawal to where his horse was. As he reached his robot horse Sir Ranma's radio crackled to life.  
  
"Attention everyone I just picked up a request for air support from the CS troops. They'll be here in less than two minutes. We need to haul ass and quick."  
  
With that, Sir Ranma mounted his horse and he headed off towards the rendezvous. The zombies and mummies remained behind to continue battling the confused troops that remained.  
  
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Sir Ranma charged towards one of the link-up points when a few medium- ranged missiles exploded nearby. 'Oh shit, what'd I do to deserve this?' Ranma thought, and then he remembered all the stuff he did during the war and before. 'Oh yeah, that.' His robot horse charged thru the woods at a speed that no natural horse could hope to achieve but it would not be fast enough to outrun a dedicated air strike by the Coalition. Ranma needed somewhere to hide and fast. Bursting into a clearing Ranma saw the Ley Line from where the Iron horse had picked up the refugees and even now was speeding to Dweomer where they would be safe from this. The roar of engines alerted him to the coming of the enemies Sky Cycles from both the North and South, he was trapped. However the infamous Saotome luck seemed to shine once more as from within the Ley Line a tear began to form, like the hands of a mighty god, the veil between dimensions was torn asunder. Random rifts like this were extremely dangerous and should he go thru the gateway the young Cyber-Knight knew he would be trapped until he could find a way home but as he saw the enemy closing to attack range Sir Ranma knew he had no other choice should he desire to live. So Ranma prayed his luck would hold and his steed charged thru the rift. The Coalition Sky Cycles and SAMAS units did not follow, the fear of being trapped in an alien world staying them.  
  
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In her home, Nodoka Saotome continued to await news of her wayward son and husband. At first she had been kept informed of the wellbeing of her child by letters her husband, Genma, would send. However ten years ago the flow of letters had stopped. Originally, she had been worried about her only child but a few years ago, she had begun to have premonitions and feelings that her son was well and at times got the feeling that he was being very manly. It was from these feelings that she drew her reassurance of her child's wellbeing, but that did not prevent her from asking a friend who was an investigator to seek any information pertaining to her wayward family. However since Genma's travels took place primarily in the wilds, away from cities, information was not easy to obtain.  
  
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"Eric." A young woman in mechanics overalls said as she opened the flap to the tent he was staying in.  
  
"Yes Sam what is it?" the sorcerer said opening his steel-gray eyes and looking at the young Psi-Tech who had interrupted his meditation.  
  
"W..we have some news on what might have happened to Sir Saotome sir." The psychic mechanic said nervously. Sam had never been very good with people, preferring to spend her time with machines, and tended to be shy around others. "We picked up a Coalition transmission regarding a Cyber-Knight. It said that he had gone into a rift that had appeared at the Ley Line were the train had been." She flinched slightly as Eric's eyes narrowed.  
  
Eric rose from his seat and motioned for the young technician to exit. Following beside her, he said, "This is not good. In fact we'd be very lucky if we ever find him." Grabbing her arm Eric turned Sam to look at him.  
  
"Now look Sam I need you to get the Seer, tell him to see if he can divine where Ranma is, or at least if he is in a familiar place. Also, I need you to go and tell Garak to check the com frequencies to see if it is safe to send a team to the line. I want to have someone read the portal and find out where it went if at all possible."  
  
"Yes sir." Sam said and she ran off to carry out her orders.  
  
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END PROLOGUE  
  
Next Chapter: Ranma returns to the dimension of his birth, though he does not know that fact. Once there stuff happens as he makes his way from China to Japan.  
  
Authors notes:  
  
Ahhh now that feels better. I decided to rewrite this fic since it seemed a little disorganized.  
  
One thing I have noticed in many Ranma/Rifts fics is that he knows that he is returning to his home dimension so I decided to play with him not knowing that. Of course, when he gets to Japan his top priority would be survival and he has little in the way of local currency, like about none. Given that fact, I am going to have to think of a job for him. In addition, his friends are not about to abandon him. Oh and naturally, Ranma will wander into the way of the plans of villains. 


	2. Sir Saotome Chapter One: Settling Int...

Sir Saotome  
  
Ranma/Rifts fan fiction by DarkJackel  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Ranma ½, Rifts, or anything else save, possibly, the plot.  
  
Chapter One: New Old-Fashioned World, Same Old Tricks  
  
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The Jusendo valley of China was a place of magic, shrouded in mystery, contained in this small piece of land reside three tribes whose existence has been all but forgotten. One was the Amazons, powerful warrior women who have preserved their way of life for over three thousand years with their skill in the martial arts. Another, the Musk Dynasty, whose warriors mated with beasts transformed into women by the cursed springs of the valley to give them abilities beyond those of mortal men. Finally the Phoenix Tribe, birdmen lead by an immortal Phoenix who claims to be a god, Saffron. For many centuries a bloody war was fought between these peoples for control of the Ley Line Nexus with-in the valley. Whoever would control the Nexus would have a decisive advantage over their foes, the ki abilities and magic enhanced by the power of the lines. After many costly battles the three tribes settled to an uneasy truce that the nexus at Jusenkyo would be ruled by no power, but that each would control one of the lines that comprised it, and, after the passage of many centuries, the reason for the conflicts was almost completely forgotten.  
  
From the line at the Dragon Tap a tear formed in the very fabric of space and time itself. Bursting out from the azure portal Sir Ranma Saotome, knight errant, slowed his horse to a stop and pulled a small device from his saddle bag. After a few seconds a green light lit up on the molecular analyzer, proving the air to be breathable. After looking at his surroundings for awhile the armored knight set out in a new direction to see what lay before him in this world.  
  
High above a small group of warriors from the Phoenix Tribe watched as the Cyber-Knight walked away from their lands. It was their duty to watch for random monsters and demons that sometimes appeared along a strip of their lands. It was dangerous work but also one that carried great honor as they would be the first to battle any horror that appeared. The team leader noticed that the figure which emerged looked like an armored human and was heading to the cursed springs. With a hand signal the birdman sent one of his troops to report this odd occurrence to their lord, Saffron, knowing that their god-king would know what to make of these happenings. Another hand signal dispatched another two warriors to keep watch over the stranger from the skies. Should this being be a threat it would find no easy prey amongst the Phoenix Tribe, they would see to that.  
  
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As Ranma approached the cursed pools of Jusenkyo he saw a portly man in a Mao suit and decided it was time to get some information if he could. Naturally riding up to the man on a robot horse, wearing environmental battle armor, would most likely unnerve the man so Ranma dismounted and moved to remove his helmet. With a hiss the environmental seal on the helmet came undone and Ranma removed the piece of armor from his head. Ranma's raven black pig-tail, now free from the confines of the helmet, fell to rest near his shoulders. His lungs breathed in the fresh, unfiltered air, and his eyes gazed upon the lands without the multi-optic systems of his helmet.  
  
Watching for potential dangers Ranma approached the Guide.  
  
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The Guide to the Cursed Springs of Jusenkyo had gone out to check on the springs and get in a brief stroll when he saw a sight that was very strange, even for him. A man, dressed in armor that looked like a high- tech version of med-evil armor with a camouflage traveling cloak, was approaching him.  
  
"Nihao mister Customer and welcome to the Cursed Springs of Jusenkyo." The guide said, weird as it may be the Jusenkyo Guide was still a professional. Since the features on the stranger looked Japanese he tried that language.  
  
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Ranma was relieved when the guide addressed him in a language he knew. Thankfully Ranma had maintained his knowledge of Japanese, even though it was not as widely spoken a language as others. "Pardon me sir but what country is this?"  
  
'Okay now this is just plain old fashioned weird.' The Guide thought as he answered the knight's question. "You in China Mr. Customer."  
  
Ranma felt a shiver run up his spine at the statement that they were in China but realized that if the China of this world was like the one of his the guide would have been dead long ago. "Okay sir, would you happen to know the way to the nearest human settlement?" Hopefully he could get a ship to some other place or cut up through Russia. He needed to be in a place where he spoke the language.  
  
The guide blinked, someone was here and not itching to mess around in the cursed springs. This was a first. He'd have to write it down just so he didn't forget it actually happened. "Yes Mr. Customer, I take you to village of Amazons."  
  
'Amazons.. in China... What kind of messed up world have I landed on? Oh well it's a start, plus it's better than demons.' Ranma thought. "Um thanks, just let me get my horse okay."  
  
"That okay Mr. Customer." And with that they set off towards the Amazons Village.  
  
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Captain Zaing Ho Lei of the People's Liberation Army of China watched as his forces attacked the Amazons of Jusendo Valley from his command tank. For too long the Pollet Bureau had suffered the disobedience of the peoples of the region and now they were being punished. The attack had gone well as they had caught the savages in the midst of some festival with their opening barrage of rockets. After the Amazons they would move on to wipe out the rest of the rebellious primitives.  
  
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In his throne-room atop Phoenix Mountain Saffron, the mighty god-king of the Phoenix Tribe listened to the account of events being given to him by a member of one of his demon fighting squads. Even though his appearance seemed that of a child his mind was stocked with hundreds of life-times worth of experience and knowledge. If his forces went on the offensive they could catch the intruder off guard, however without foreknowledge of this newcomer's intentions he could be committing forces to a senseless attack. On the other hand should the newcomer's intentions turn out to be violent he would be wasting an opportunity and could cost him the lives of many of his subjects. Now many would think Saffron would just leap to attack the invader, confident that nothing could best his skilled warriors and his own supernatural powers. For the most part this is true; however there were several complicating factors. While the majority of supernatural creatures and creatures of magic had abandoned this dimension eons ago it was possible that one could enter from a random dimensional portal. Also he had yet to achieve his adult form and while Saffron knew he was superior to any mortal being in any form, against a greater being like himself, on the other hand, could be a more difficult task. After careful thought the god-king spoke.  
  
"Continue to observe this newcomer from the skies. Should he prove a danger then strike. I want all soldiers to be on the watch for him as well. Should he leave our boarders then double the guard but leave him be."  
  
"Yes my lord."  
  
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Thru out his lands the military machine of the Phoenix Tribe made their lord's will into reality as birds carried the orders to their military forts. As Ranma left the boundaries of the Phoenix Tribe the patrols were doubled and defenses tightened as the tribe readied itself for any type of surprise attack.  
  
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From atop a hill overlooking the village Sir Ranma Saotome saw the battle between the Amazons and the Chinese Army. No, battle was not an appropriate term, more like a massacre, Ranma had seen many slaughters in his life and this was definitely one. The Amazons were putting up a mighty battle but the soldiers of the People's Republic had taken them by surprise and were exploiting that edge for all it was worth. Watching the scene Ranma's desire to help people warred with his unwillingness to interfere in a situation he might not understand. However when a T-90 drove thru a hut holding children and mowed down the one's that escaped with its machine gun Ranma's decision was made. Turning to look at the Guide he noticed the Guide had run away, which was what he was going to tell the Guide to do anyways.  
  
With ease born of much experience Ranma drew his rifle and motioned for his steed to charge onto the battlefield. It was time to even the odds.  
  
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The Amazons continued to battle valiantly for their very survival against the outside attackers. However they had been caught off guard at the end of their annual tournament so many of their finest fighters was tired or injured. The Elders tried to organize their defense but things were falling apart too quickly. Then a crimson bolt of light tore into one of the Chinese tanks, blowing it apart. A second and then third tank joined the first as burning slag as an armored figure on a mechanical looking horse waded into the battle.  
  
Re-holstering his rifle Ranma leapt from his steed and faced off against the soldiers of the People's Liberation Army of China. The Code of Chivalry prevented him from attacking these solders with his psi-weapons, his more conventional weapons on the other hand... Drawing his Wilk's 227 laser pulse pistol Ranma opened up on two dozen grunts with single shots, each shot vaporizing a it's target. Switching to a vibro-saber he kept for such occasions Ranma sliced thru a few more soldiers like a hot knife thru butter. Automatic weapons fire rained down upon the Cyber-Knight but Sir Saotome simply ignored it. The worst it could do against his molecularly bonded armor was to scuff the paint so they were not even a threat. On the other hand their fragile human bodies offered no resistance against the destructive power of his weaponry, and when coupled with his martial skill it was no contest. Even the few weapons they had that could harm him (RPG's and anti-tank guns) were evaded and destroyed with unnatural ease. Spotting the grenades of a fallen enemy Ranma charged the nearest tank, scoping the grenades up in the process.  
  
Elsewhere on the battlefield Ranma's robots were making a fine showing of themselves, their hydraulic strength and concealed weapons devastating the solders. Also with Ranma's entrance the Amazons managed to turn the tides against their enemies and were repaying the PLA for all they had done as only enraged Amazons can.  
  
Captain Lei watched as their glorious victory transformed into a terrible defeat. As he was moving to call a retreat so they could regroup the top hatch opened and a grenade fell into the cabin. The Captain didn't have a chance to scream as the fragmentation grenade tore his body into bleeding strips of meat.  
  
Ranma leapt from tank-to-tank, disabling or destroying each one until all of the enemy armor had been destroyed. By this time the soldiers left alive realized this was hopeless and decided to run like the hounds of hell were riding their asses.  
  
With the battle over some of the Amazons went to check on the wounded or put out fires but others surrounded the armored figure that had joined in their battle. Several of the younger and more impetuous women were annoyed by this outsider who had interfered in their battle; however the Elders realized that it would be both rude and imprudent to attack someone who pulled their asses out of the fire.  
  
Cologne's ancient eyes evaluated the man before her. He was dressed in a strange armor which looked like a high-tech version of European plate armor. Opening her senses Cologne was surprised by the amount of power radiating from the armored man. From his aura she could see a great deal of psychic power and discipline. However the man's aura showed their inner goodness. This put the aged Matriarch at ease for it would signify that he had no ill intent towards the tribe. It was then that the figure spoke.  
  
'Guess I went a little overboard.' Ranma thought as he surveyed the crowd around him. His original concerns of stepping into a situation he didn't fully understand coming back. Out of the mass of humanity came a very bizarre looking creature perched on top of a staff. Opening his psychic senses Ranma determined that the woman (?) was not some form of demon or monster. "I do not wish to fight you and apologize if I have in some way offended you." He said, hoping that at least one of them spoke Japanese, preferably one who wasn't dead set on killing him. Going thru that once in his life was enough and the language translator in his armor let him know that some of the women in this crowd wanted to fight him.  
  
"Though the thought is appreciated, no apology is necessary under these circumstances. However I would like to know who you are and what brings you to our lands young warrior?" Cologne said to the man in front of her.  
  
Ranma let off a mental sigh of relief knowing he wouldn't have to fight his way out of this. "My name is Sir Ranma Saotome, knight errant, and currently I seek directions to the nearest port city." It felt good to be a knight errant again as opposed to working for a government.  
  
'Knight Errant huh, well that is new, explains the look too.' Cologne thought. Now under normal circumstances she would attempt to acquire the magic items that Sir Saotome carried. However given the situation and what he had done that would be both imprudent and really rude. Already half the villages remaining warriors were tailing the soldiers who escaped, not only to keep them from reporting their failure but to see if they could find out what else the PLA's attack had called for. With luck they could bring the Phoenix or the Musk in on their retaliation and save some womanpower. "Well young man in return for your aid I think it would only be fair to give you the directions you seek." She said. After directing him to a small village on the coast outside the Jusendo valley Ranma thanked her and left.  
  
As Ranma departed one of the scouts returned with a file containing their attacker's orders. As she read them a grim smile graced her face. The Chinese government had planted a villainous crop and would now reap a dark harvest.  
  
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After spending the day helping the Amazons recover from the Chinese assault Ranma headed off towards the next town. Traveling at an easy 30 to 40 mph Ranma's mind began working thru the problems that being a dimensional refugee presented. He had no papers, no contacts, and no destination. Assuming that Japan existed in this dimension he could go there. At least then he would be in a country he spoke the local language of.  
  
Also he would need some way to transport his horse. Robots were probably not very common and it would not do to bring unnecessary attention to himself. Coming to a clearing in the woods Ranma signaled his horse to halt. Night would be coming soon and it would be a good time to set up camp. Unloading his bags from the bot Ranma unpacked his tent and began to set it up camp.  
  
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Latter that night, after eating some field rations he had brought with him Ranma, now out of his armor, sat back against the back of a tree and began to write down what had happened in his log. He had taken to writing down a log so that he could look back over his past actions and determine what he could have done better; it also serves as a reminder to himself of who he is, where he's been, and where he's going. Once his writing was finished Ranma placed the log back in his travel pack. Then Ranma walked away from his camp and began to practice his martial arts. Clearing his mind Ranma began flowing thru his forms. Fluid attacks and defenses melded together to form a versatile style designed to subdue or, if necessary, kill an opponent. Integrated into the martial styles of the Cyber-knight were the several of the aerial styles of the Anything Goes. Ranma didn't remember where he had learned the jumping techniques; in fact because of the years of psychological treatment he had to undergo as a result of his Neko-Ken training he remembers little of his life before he came to Rifts Earth.  
  
Continuing his training until dark Ranma settled in for the night and ordered his robot horse to keep watch. It was at times like this when the past tended to catch up with him. All the people that he could not save or had not been able to save came back to haunt him. Scenes of massacres he had seen played thru his mind. Friends lost to the violence of daily life would visit him at nights. T.C., one of the first Juicers he had ever had the experience of working with, who had died after a job when his Last Call came. It had been in a bar after a job T.C., himself, and a few others had done when all of a sudden T.C. coughed up a lot of blood for no reason and dropped dead. Like all Juicers the chemical augmentation which granted them their fantastic physical abilities also drastically shortened their lives. His friend must have not realized that his time was so close, or maybe he did but just never let anyone know. Either way given the look of surprise on his face when the end came he didn't think it would hit him then. Of all the people he had meet and parted ways with those who had met a violent end were the ones he remembered the most. Eventually sleep did come to his mind and, under the watchful eye of his bot; Sir Ranma Saotome went to sleep.  
  
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Late the next day Cologne received word from the messengers the Council had sent to the Musk and Phoenix. As they had expected their hate of the Chinese government was greater than their distrust of each other. A conference was to be held to discuss what to do.  
  
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As the dawn broke Ranma rose from his nights slumber. It had been a fairly good night as nothing had given his horse, Shinden, cause to awaken him. 'Damn I guess yesterday wasn't some weird-ass dream, or that the last year could have just been an elaborate nightmare. I wonder what that says about your life when you wish it was just a nightmare.' Ranma thought. On the bright side he wasn't dead yet. And so Ranma rose and got together something resembling food.  
  
After eating Ranma stretched and began a series of katas. As he flowed thru his forms Ranma's mind was working on how to get out of the country. First problem was that he couldn't speak the local language. This severely restricted the number of people he could speak to. That was not only a problem in and of itself but would also worsen all of his other problems. Another was the total lack of papers. No papers, passport, or any other form of identification that he could use in this dimension. On top of that he was not sure that his money would be accepted here. First off the bulk of his money was in credits and if they lacked a system to access such funds he was in trouble. However he could make it with the precious metals and gemstones he had with him. Unless, of course, such things were not valued on this Earth, then he was just screwed. For all he knew he dog shit could be the only valued currency. Maybe human teeth or nachos were the local coin? That's the greatest problem with being a dimensional refugee; you could pop up in places where literally anything could be possible.  
  
'Damn I wish I had taken the time to get some general information at that Amazon village.' Ranma thought as he jumped into the air to continue his practice. Unfortunately he had to try and limit the amount of people who know that he is from another dimension, at least until he was sure that such a fact would not get him lynched. As he thought about this he blocked a blow from his imaginary opponent while kicking said opponent. Angling himself above this imaginary foe he immobilized his enemy and rained down blows while driving him into the ground. There were several things he would need. He would need a way to move Shinden and his other high-tech and magical items out of the country. In the event that the soldiers he had fought before were in the service of the ruling government he could well be a wanted man. 'Well it wouldn't be the first time.'  
  
Add to that he would need to do so with limited, if not no, funds, no contacts, and little knowledge of the world he was in. One possibility would be to swim to Japan but he discarded that idea. Shinden would have to walk along the bottom and he did not yet know what beasts might lurk within the depths of the seas. Where he came from the seas were far too dangerous for such an attempt and Ranma was not willing to chance that here would be much different. On top of that there was the fact that while all of his things were resistant to, or unaffected by, water he wouldn't wish to chance them in the ocean. 'Actually now that I think about it how would I know if the water was acidic or not?' Ranma thought. It wasn't a very likely event, seeing as there was human life and all, but it was better to error on the side of caution. It had only cost him his skeleton before he had learned that lesson. Underestimated an opponent and was almost killed for his trouble, even though he had survived his skeleton had been so covered in hair-line fractures that it could just barely support his body weight and at the very least needed to be replaced. Operation hurts like a bitch too, had to have every bone in his body surgically removed and replaced with molecularly-bonded ceramic bones. Recovery from both the wounds and surgery was no picnic either, but on the bright side his new skeleton didn't break under any but the most extreme of forces, plus the new bones made him tougher than before. Also he was one of the few people to be on the business end of a G-10's Boom Gun and live to tell about it.  
  
Getting on a plane or a boat would be better. However there was the distinct possibility that the people of this dimension lacked means of traversing the seas or skies. Admittently this seemed a little paranoid to Ranma but he had been told that when randomly traversing dimensions that literally anything goes. Also the few times he'd been thru a rift he'd seen some pretty strange worlds. Either way a lack of information could result in him dieing in a fashion that would be utterly humiliating, and that just wouldn't do. He'd just have to head into a town near the coast and trust his luck to see him thru.  
  
Conveniently he had come to that decision as he had concluded his morning exercise. Given the rather retro tech levels he had witnessed it would be a fair guess that people walking around in body armor is not a common sight. Well there was always the Cyber-armor grafted onto his body, plus the fact that he was one tough bastard and a damn good armed and unarmed fighter with psychic senses. He could probably handle anything this world could throw at him without his armor. Also in that Amazon Village more than a few people had looked at him like he was totally insane. Since drawing unnecessary attention to himself would probably be counter-productive he would have to travel in a less-conspicuous fashion.  
  
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Lui Chin-Sai grinned as the old man fell to the ground. He was a farmer who had gotten on the bad side of the Chinese government and was seeking passage to Japan to escape from the government's displeasure. Naturally Lui had came in and offered to sell a boat he kept for just such an occasion to the old man and his family. Of course he had no such plans on selling the boat to this man and, just like with the last few people who came to buy his craft. He would kill the old man right away; however his granddaughter, who was being covered by a few of his lackeys, would join the old man after they had had some fun with her.  
  
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Ranma was riding through the woods parallel to a country road, pondering how to exit the country. He had stowed his armor in favor of more civilian garb. He was wearing a pair of steel-toed boots, loose exercise pants with kneepads, a utility belt with his TW Thundergun in his holster, a dirty-white muscle shirt revealing the tattoos that ran along his arms, and a belt across his chest with his vibro-saber sheathed on his back. It was then that he heard a cry of pain from the roadside. With skill born of countless forest battles Sir Saotome quietly dropped from his steed. Keeping his camouflage cloak pulled around him to increase his concealment the Cyber-knight approached where the sound had originated from. The scene that met his eyes was one that he wished was not so familiar to his eyes.  
  
'It's the highlight of my existence.' The sword replied, eager to be used to help. With a rasp Ranma drew the weapon from his back sheath and undid his camouflage cloak and the knight waited until he could attack the bandits without endangering the innocents. Normally ambushing an enemy would go against the Code of Chivalry but, at least in Ranma's opinion, the tenant of protecting the innocent took precedent and so was permissible in this case. Finally an opportunity presented itself when the bandits had backed the old man and young woman against a truck. With a rebel yell he charged from his possession.  
  
The bandits responded to the charge by turning and opening fire upon the attacking knight with their AKs, however before the trigger was even pulled Ranma had begun evading the bullets, effortlessly leaning out of their way without breaking his charge towards the center bandit. Bringing his sword down he effortlessly sliced the man's assault rifle in two and then knocked the wind out of the bandit with a spin-kick, landing the recipient on his ass. The two flanking Ranma decided to try and club him into submission with their rifles however Ranma ducked under both and knocked the gun out of the hands of the attacker on his right. Quickly he delivered a palm strike to the man's chest, knocking him away, before he grasp the barrel of the AK-47 as it fell from the air. With his new weapon he slammed the other bandit in the temple with the weapon's butt and then followed up by dropping into a low sweep with his sword, cutting the man's legs off at the knees. Even as he fell screaming to the ground Ranma slashed his rifle and the one he had procured into confetti with his sword. Turning to the other two who were just getting up from his assault Ranma said, in a cool tone and leveling his sword at them "Well boys you can either grab your friend here and run, or we can finish this. Your call?"  
  
One of the bandits either understood enough Japanese to make out what Ranma had said or got the gist of the message because he shouted something to the other and they grabbed their friend and, ran like all Hell were after them.  
  
With the combat concluded Ranma wiped the blood from his blade and re- sheathed it. As Ranma tuned to the two people the older of the two approached him and said "Thank you kind sir for what you've done for us. How can we ever repay you for saving us?"  
  
"No need for thanks good sir. Though I would like to know what those three were attacking you for." You never knew, there could be more to this than meets the eye.  
  
"Ah yes well I was seeking to purchase a boat. You see I've recently fallen from favor with the central government and was hoping to flee with my granddaughter to Japan. You see my son was involved in a protest against the conditions of the government and was arrested and executed."  
  
"Damn." Ranma said. He had never put much faith in governments and this just reaffirmed his distrust of authority.  
  
"Yes well with that in mind we got desperate and tried to buy a boat, those hoodlums agreed to sell us one." He said gesturing to the small boat hitched up to the truck. "However when my granddaughter and I showed up to purchase it they attacked us."  
  
"So how were you going to sail this craft to Japan?" Ranma asked, after all even though it was distasteful this could be his ticket out of here.  
  
"Well I was able to get in touch with a few survivors of the protest who knew how to sail." The old man replied. "All I needed was to get the boat."  
  
"Not to impose or nuthin but do ya think I could bum a ride to Japan with ya?" Ranma asked.  
  
"Not at all young man, it would be my pleasure."  
  
"Cool, just let me get my stuff." Then Ranma noticed the teenage girl, obviously the granddaughter, who was looking at him with an awed expression that Ranma was also familiar with. 'Man one of my ancestor's must'a done some nasty shit for me to get this kind of bad luck.'  
  
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(Speaking of which)  
  
Genma panted as he evaded the last of his pursuers. The ten years since Ranma has disappeared had not been good to him. Without an heir he could not con his way into free room and board at dojos, also he could no longer exchange the boy for supplies. To compound this problem the general populace tended to disapprove of his thievery. 'Hmm, they should be grateful to have their goods taken to serve such a mighty martial artist.' Genma thought to himself.  
  
In his continuing journey to avoid his wife Genma had traveled throughout most of Asia. Because of this he had caused a few interesting global developments. There was now a treaty between North and South Korea to the effect that, while they are still at war with each other, should Genma Saotome be in the area the opposing forces will cease hostilities and commence aggressions upon Genma himself. In China he had been cursed while attempting to evade a group of Amazons who were after him for stealing a portion of their winter food stores. Also to avoid the authorities Genma had partaken in some treasure hunting and, should he ever find another heir to replace the boy, he had found several new techniques. Techniques that, while too risk for him to learn himself, would serve him well in creating a properly powerful and obedient heir.  
  
Now, ten years since the boy had disappeared, Genma had avoided Japan as much as possible. However recently he had felt the desire to return to his homeland, where there were not governments interested in his arrest for his multitude of thefts. The primary reasons that he had avoided Japan in its entirety had to do with his wife and her occasional eerie premonitions. It was because of her occasional premonitions that Genma did everything he could to keep her from finding him. Now, however, he felt that she would have given up hope of finding the boy and himself. However there was the problem of where to live. He couldn't go home. Not if he liked his head where it was, on his neck. Soun's place was an option. However without the boy to fore fill the pact between the Saotome and Tendo clans it might be hard to justify his stay to Soun's wife. That concern was quickly cast aside, after all Soun would naturally side with him and that would ensure him a stay.  
  
With that Genma Saotome made his way for the coast of China so that he could swim to Japan. Suddenly realizing that he had moved to soon the rotund martial artist's plans went into revision. First he would get away from the posse on his tail. After that he would go to Japan and Soun's house. Running as fast as he could in as confusing a trail as could be done without losing speed, and hence ground, to the bloodthirsty mob at his heels.  
  
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Sir Ranma Saotome looked out upon the horizon. He was finally out of China and making his way to Japan. With any luck he would find a way to return to his own dimension. For now the peacefulness of this dimension would serve as a nice vacation from the violence and chaos of his daily life. After all if he was to be a dimensional refugee then Ranma Saotome would make the best of it that he could. Of course until they made landfall he would have to deal with a few of his female shipmates making passes at him, however to use his knightly status merely to gratify carnal lusts went against his principles so he abstained from indulging in their offers.  
  
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END CHAPTER ONE.  
  
Next Chapter: Well Ranma has carved his way out of China, now he arrives in the Land of the Rising Sun. Where will his wanderings lead him? Whom will he meet? And most importantly, how will he get money? Ranma aimlessly wanders Japan and eventually gets a job.  
  
Authors Notes: Well another chapter in the bank. Now some may wonder why Ranma had not used his psi-weapons against his enemies. It goes against the Code of Chivalry to use them against someone who is not equally matched in armament or is not a supernatural being.  
  
A few people have asked me if I am going to add SM into the mix like the first version. Yes I do plan to as it gives me more to work with. Also with Ranma's views against large governments and sense of justice and morality as well as grasp of philosophy will bring several of their beliefs and views into question.  
  
TW Thundergun: A Techno-Wizard revolver. It fires magically charged silver bullets and is extremely effective against supernatural evil.  
  
Happy Halloween everyone!!!  
  
C&C is welcomed. Flames shall be used to roast marshmallows.  
  
E-mail: darkjackel@hotmail.com 


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